Top tools for cottage owners

Cottages and cabins require serious maintenance and having the right tools is a must if you want to spend more time fishing and less time fixing.

Top tools for cottage owners

Here is a selection of affordable tools to help make life a little easier for your favourite cottage handyman and handylady.

Tool sharpener
Anything that has a blade at the cabin eventually gets dull, including axes, shoves, lawnmower blades, and knives.

Taking tools back to the city to get them sharpened is cumbersome work and a huge loss of valuable time, so it makes sense to keep a simple all-purpose sharpener at the lake.

This one is very popular and easy on the pocket book.

Log splitter
If you spend a lot of time at the cabin during the cooler months, you need to stack up a ton of wood. Splitting it all by hand can be back-breaking work and it’s easy to waste an entire weekend swinging the axe instead of swinging in the hammock.

A log splitter saves valuable time, is safer than using an axe all day, and let’s you focus your energy on more enjoyable cottage activities.

If you have an aging cottage friend or family member who is too proud to buy one of these for himself, a log splitter makes a great gift. The first one shown below runs on electricity and the other is gas-powered for more remote cabins.

Power washer
A power washer makes life a lot easier when it comes time to clean the siding, deck, dock, boat, or cottage equipment. The units are available in both electric or gas-powered models and save valuable time when you plan to stain or paint at the cottage.

The power washer is especially useful for cottagers who are fortunate enough to own the dock that tends to be the preferred party place for the resident mink, otters, or gulls.

You can also use the power washer to scare away unwanted visitors near the cabin. (the animal kind, of course)

Heavy Duty Hauling Cart
Firewood, rocks, equipment, and even groceries can take forever to carry just a short distance at the cottage. This popular cart is great for saving time as well as your back. You can even pull it with the riding mower or an ATV.

Log carrier
Bringing logs into the cabin from the wood pile is a dirty, awkward, and often painful job. This sturdy canvas log tote is ideal for cottagers who are fed up with bugs, slivers, and crushed toes.

Laser Measure
Building a new deck, bunkie, or addition at the cabin? Using a laser measure can save a ton of time in the process. You can also use the laser to figure out how tall a tree is before you cut it down.

Cordless Power Tools
Off the grid properties pose a challenge when we want to build a new storage shed or outhouse because the regular power tools are rendered useless.

Even when the property has electricity, the projects that require power tools are often located way beyond the reach of the nearest outlet. Having a set of cordless tools makes life a lot easier at the lake and every cottage DIYer should at least have at a basic cordless kit.

Outdoor seat and kneeler
Sometimes you have to work on your knees at the cabin and that can be very uncomfortable. This handy seat converts into a nice kneeling pad and is great for any chore that require sitting on kneeling at the cabin.

Basic Maintenance Tools
The above list is designed to help make life roll along a bit easier at the lake and assumes you already have all the basic must-have gear.

For new cottagers who are just putting their maintenance arsenal together, please check out our essential tools for cottage maintenance page to get a list of all the critical tools you need to keep things running smoothly at the lake.